Innisfail Town Theatre (ITT) is hosting the 2nd annual Heartland Regional One-Act Festival in May.
“We want to promote culture in our community and (see) people come out and participate,” said Christine Chalaturnyk, Heartland regional representative. “We have tentative dates of May 11 and 12.”
The Heartland region includes towns and cities from Red Deer to Didsbury to Three Hills and north to Rocky Mountain House.
The registration deadline for the event is April 11.
The festival is part of the Alberta Drama Festival Association (ADFA) and is being held at Innisfail's Ol’ Moose Hall. It is open to participants 18 years and older.
“If there was a group of people that want to perform a one-act play, anyone in the community can be part of this,” said Chalaturnyk.
She noted some requirements for the festival, including setup and teardown times and the length of the plays.
“A published one-act play could be used for the festival but also, if we have playwrights in the community that have original works that they would like to have performed then (participants) can enter original one- acts as well,” Chalaturnyk added, noting they can be of any genre, such as drama or comedy.
“There is no limit to the number of actors but there are some regulations. The play has to be between 10 and 50 minutes. Performers will have 1 0 minutes to set up their stage and have five minutes to tear down and remove items from the stage.”
Chalaturnyk said this is ITT's second consecutive year hosting the festival in the region.
"Our region hasn't been represented (in the one-act festival) for many years," she said. "It's just been the last year that I've taken on that role."
Chalaturnyk said last year they had just one entry in the festival but hope to see more this year.
"We would love to get at least three one-act plays. We're going to waive the entry fee for the first three groups that register," she said, adding there is also a $25 membership fee payable to the ADFA.
"It would be a great opportunity for people to perform in a very low-risk atmosphere," she added. "Anyone who's a playwright would gain an opportunity to have their work critiqued, given exposure and receive some feedback.
"It might give people a taste for drama and for the theatre."
Winners will move on to the 2018 ADFA provincial one-act festival in Fort McMurray in May.
For more information or to register a one-act play, visit the ADFA website at www.adfa.ca or email Chalaturnyk at [email protected]
